In the midst of a third-quarter rally that sparked Wednesday's win over the Bulls, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich called out a play for Cory Joseph, the second-year point guard who has spent the bulk of his career in the D-League.

Then Popovich had a second thought as Joseph, making his second start since being called up from Austin on March 1, dribbled up the court.

“Do you know (the play)?” Popovich yelled.

Assured Joseph did, Popovich watched as the former Texas Longhorn executed the play that resulted in another Spurs' basket.

Pressed into the starting role because All-Star Tony Parker suffered a sprained left ankle on the day he re-joined the team, Joseph is operating with a slightly smaller playbook than the one Parker uses.

“(Cory) probably knows 80 percent of what we're doing,” Popovich said, “but special things we might do for Tony or Timmy (Duncan) or Manu (Ginobili) he doesn't have. While he's in the game we're going to try to limit to that motion part of the offense and the core of what we do, rather than specialty things for somebody.”

Popovich has been impressed by Joseph's straightforward approach to his starting assignment, especially his attention to the basketball. He has only one turnover in starts against the Pistons and Bulls.

“That is impressive,” Popovich said. “His steadiness and his ability to play the game in a solid manner and also his defensive intensity and ability to go after loose balls, make a steal — all those have earned him the respect of the team.”

“He's doing a great job as a true point guard, not just trying to score,” Diaw said. “He's running the team right now.”

If he proves himself over the next few weeks, might Popovich design a play specifically for Joseph?

“When we put one in for (former Spur) Mario Elie, we'll put one in for Cory,” Popovich said.

Batman retiring: When a Mexican freetail bat was spotted flying around the AT&T Center during the second half of Wednesday's game, Spurs backup forward Stephen Jackson sounded an alarm for Ginobili.

“Jack made me see it,” said Ginobili, who famously swatted a bat to the floor after it buzzed the court in a game against the Kings on Halloween in 2009.

Ginobili made the mistake of picking up what he thought was a mortally wounded animal and delivering it to an usher for disposal. He later had to undergo a series of rabies shots, a painful precaution he doesn't care to endure again.

With that still in his mind, he wanted no part of it this time.

“For sure, I'm never going to touch one again,” he said. “It was very painful to go through all the vaccines and shots and everything. It's over. And I don't think I can do it again. One for one is a great percentage. I'm going to retire.”